By Yohann Perié, private chef
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In Mallorca, dining outdoors is part of the holiday. The question is where: on the terrace of a harbourside restaurant, or on your own villa's terrace. Both have their charms, and their drawbacks. Here is an even-handed comparison, point by point, to help you choose, or combine the two.
A table at 9pm in the height of August
In July and August, the best tables in the harbours and villages fill up quickly. You have to book, take whatever slot is left, and start all over again the next day. Some evenings, the places you had in mind are fully booked, and there is no room for a last-minute whim: without planning ahead, there is no table. With a chef at the villa, the table is ready every evening at whatever time suits you, and the question does not arise for the rest of your stay.
The drive home
When the villa sits in the hills, above a village or at the end of a track, going out to a restaurant means getting back in the car, often in high-season traffic. Coming back at night, the roads wind, lighting is scarce, and an animal can appear round a bend. Someone has to stay sober to drive: after a dinner with wine, these roads become dangerous, and that is not a risk worth taking on holiday. At the villa, nobody drives: you stay outside, open a bottle of island wine, and head up to bed.
Heat and mealtimes
The Mallorcan summer sets its own pace. Nobody wants a heavy meal at midday, and dinner proper comes late, once the heat eases. At the villa, the day follows that rhythm: a light, fresh lunch in the shade, dinner outdoors at dusk, and afternoon tea for the children when they get back from the beach, if your package includes it. Children eat when they are hungry and leave the table when they have finished.
What is on the plate
At a restaurant, you order from a menu. At the villa, I plan the menus day by day, according to the morning market and what you feel like that evening. Allergies, diets and everyone's tastes are sorted out before the stay: nobody ends up eating separately.
I cook in my own way, with the island's produce: French cooking that sits naturally with Mediterranean flavours. That blend is what makes the difference: an experience of its own, one you will not find in the island's restaurants.
The markets, where it all begins
Each day of cooking starts here, and the markets move from village to village depending on the day. On Sundays, Pollença, on the Plaça Major. On Wednesdays, Andratx. On Wednesdays and Saturdays, Santanyí. Palma's covered markets and the fish auction at the port make up the rest, with red prawns sold at the fish auction in Port de Sóller.
I go there for the makings of an island summer table: olive oil with its designation of origin, citrus from the Sóller valley, almonds, fleur de sel from the Es Trenc salt pans, sobrasada, vegetables and the catch of the day. I move from one market to another depending on the menus, wherever the produce will be at its best that day.
The budget: my side of the sums
In summer, at a good restaurant in one of Mallorca's harbours, dinner easily comes to €100 a head. Here is the calculation on my side, to set against it.
My packages are priced by the day, with the same rate for 2 to 10 guests: Confort from €400 for one meal a day, Sérénité from €500 for two meals, Prestige from €600 for every meal. For ten people on Confort, with dinner each evening, the chef's work comes to €40 per person per evening. Add the shopping: even allowing generously, around €20 a head for a fine dinner. That makes €60 per person, against €100 at a restaurant. And if you want to treat yourselves to special produce, a lobster or red prawns, there is room to do so.
On top, for the stay as a whole, come my travel costs, the hire car and my accommodation near the villa. As for wine, you choose it yourselves and pay what it costs you, well below wine-list prices.
What restaurants do better
Dinner almost at the water's edge, in a harbour that is new to you, has real value. A restaurant is also an evening out. There is nothing to stop you keeping two or three evenings out during the week: that is exactly what the Confort package allows, since you hand me just one meal a day.
Private chef or restaurant in Mallorca: at a glance
| Criterion | Restaurant | Private chef |
|---|---|---|
| Booking | In July and August, whatever slot is left, and the same again the next day | The table is ready every evening, at whatever time suits you |
| The drive | The car, traffic, winding roads at night, and someone who has to stay sober | Nobody drives |
| Heat and mealtimes | The restaurant's opening hours | A light lunch in the shade, dinner outdoors at dusk |
| On the plate | The menu on offer | Menus planned day by day around the market, allergies and diets settled before the stay |
| Budget | Easily €100 a head at a good restaurant in summer | By the day, from €400, €500 or €600 depending on the package, same rate for 2 to 10 guests, plus shopping, my travel costs, the hire car and my accommodation |
| An evening out | Dinner in a harbour that is new to you | Two or three evenings out remain possible with the Confort package |
Your questions about a private chef in Mallorca
Is eating out in Mallorca expensive?
It depends on the place and the season, but at a good harbourside restaurant in summer, allow easily €100 a head. For ten people with a chef at the villa, dinner comes to around €60 a head, shopping included.
Is a private chef in Mallorca worth it?
For a week with a group, often yes: the rate is the same for 2 to 10 guests, and it takes care of the shopping, menus, service and cleaning. For a single evening, a restaurant is simpler.
Does the chef cook Mallorcan food?
If you would like, using the island's produce. I cook in my own way, with the island's produce: French cooking that sits naturally with Mediterranean flavours.
Can we keep some evenings out?
Of course. The Confort package covers one meal a day: you can leave dinner to me most nights and keep two or three evenings for the island's harbours and villages.
Can I rent a villa with catering included?
Some rentals offer it, but most are let without. A chef for the whole stay is booked separately, for your group, in the villa you have chosen.
Can the chef cook outside on a plancha?
Yes, if the villa has one. An outdoor summer kitchen or a plancha on the terrace is a real bonus in summer, not a requirement: an oven, a hob and a fridge are enough.
In short
Dining outdoors, yes, but at home: no bookings, no driving in the dark, meals served when you are hungry, and a clean kitchen when you go to bed.
Full details of the packages are on the Mallorca page. For the full budget, read what a private chef costs in a Mallorca villa, and for a special occasion, a family celebration in your villa.
